Packed Up: Disaster Prevention Methods
by StylishChocobutt
Summary: When a fight goes just outside of Hammerhead goes wrong the boys find themselves needing a quick way to carry their curatives, luckily the shop at Hammerhead has just the thing hidden out the back. Much to Prompto and Noctis' dismay.


Based very loosely on the amusing prompt of:

"That's it!" Ignis declared, breaking the silence that had fallen over the camp. "I've come up with a new disaster prevention method!" And without a moment to spare, the retainer ducked below the table before pulling free two backpacks. One, bright yellow with chocobo print covering it and the other a dark blue lacking in such colourful decor. Gladio stared the bags down, peering at the leashes attached to them. "Backpacks. Your smart idea is-.. Backpacks?" He questioned. Ignis set both on the table. "No, backpacks with leashes. Let's see his Highness warp into the fray with -this-." - StylishChocobutt

inb4 they turn Ignis into a vendor like Cindy where you can 'customise' your danger prevention pack. - StylishChocobutt

They could turn Noct's backpack into a Moogle one with the little pom-pom from the carnival hat :D Or Carbuncle! – The_Asset6

Or, a fight goes wrong and the boys find themselves needing a quick way to carry curatives. Luckily, the shop at Hammerhead has a couple of dusty backpacks hidden out in the back room which will do just perfectly.

Packed Up: Disaster Prevention Methods

Blistering heat radiated off of the ebony paint of the Regalia to the point that not even the shade from Hammerhead fuel station was providing any respite. Noctis had taken the moment of rest to sit himself up against the wheel of the Regalia, breath coming out in low but rhythmic pants in protest to the temperature. Black was the colour of Lucian Royalty- clearly no one had thought that through when they'd shipped him out to the scorching plains. Groaning and resting his head between his knees, the Prince briefly considered finding a nice corner in the shade to curl up and sleep in. Ignis and Gladio had left to replenish their supply of curatives, leaving Prompto to check out the pinball machine in the diner and Noct to 'watch' the car.

He nearly jumped in fright as something cold was pressed against the bare skin of his arm. Sitting up, he raised his gaze to the familiar freckled sight of the blonde stood over him. The cold item in question turned out to be a water bottle, fresh from a freezer considering its temperature. Noct took it rather willingly.

"Thanks." He nodded as he unscrewed the cap and placed the bottle to his lips. A few gulps later, and suddenly the heat wasn't so unbearable.

Prompto moved to settle down beside him, leaning his back against the Regalia. "Don't sweat it. Literally. See what I did there?"

Noct's expression was deadpan. Clearly the blonde needed to work on his puns.

"Aw, lighten up Noct. I thought it was funny." Prompto hummed, opening his own bottle. His azure attention was soon drawn over to the opening of the garage where the 'goddess of machines' was gracing her presence. The mechanic was working on a rather banged up looking old car, currently leaning over the bonnet to get a look under the vehicles hood. The blonde was practically staring and eventually Noct reached an arm across to the distracted gunslinger and gave him a rather sharp shove.

"Keep staring with your mouth open like that, and it'll stay that way Prom."

"Staring?! I wasn't staring, I mean- there's prolonged looking and then there's-.. I wasn't staring!" The flustered blonde babbled, turning his attention to a rather interesting looking crack in the tarmac beneath him instead.

"What's got him so red?" A new voice asked, as Gladio wandered over to join the two. Over his arm was a shoulder bag – presumably stuffed full of curatives. As much as they could store items in the armiger, potions didn't quite work like that. The magic within could be volatile alongside the crystals subspace and thus more often than not the group were left lugging them around in a bag instead.

The bag in question was rather abruptly shoved in Prompto's direction – who dropped his drink in order to catch it on his lap. The bottle of water rolled a short distance away. "The sun, totally the sun. Real hot and stuff today. Is it _really_ my turn to be carrying this around?"

Smart change of topic.

"Tell me, can Noct warp with that thing on his back?" Gladio mused.

"No but-"

"Can Ignis wield a lance or dual daggers whilst that's hooked over his shoulder?"

"Well, I mean-"

"What about a Greatsword, think I can swing that around with the curatives hanging from my grasp?"

"Dude, seriously-"

"Prompto?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you shoot one handed?"

There was a brief silence as the blonde realised his defeat.

"Yeah."

"Good." Gladio concluded, with a shit-eating grin plastered across his face at the victory. "Then that settles it, you're on potion duty today."

Hooking the potions bag over his shoulder and grabbing up the previously discarded bottle of water with his free hand, Prompto groaned to the Six at his stroke of luck. Finally, Ignis approached the group and stopped to stand aside Gladio.

"Unfortunately, it would appear there will be a slight delay to our advance. Takka has informed me that there is a pack of Saberclaw not far from here that have been terrorising the locals."

Noct let out a rather long sigh of protest. They'd been struggling through hunts for days, and with the added heat of midday sun he really wasn't looking forward to fighting it out with those damn beasts. It had gotten to the point where even the local hunters relied on the group to clear up some of the larger messes. Drawing power from the Armiger and subspace to warp was beginning to take its toll on him – an effect that would only really be negated by a good rest. Judging by their luck today that wasn't going to happen.

Of course, he wasn't going to voice the true reason of concern to his friends. No, it was better they just put it down to laziness – although he wasn't sure Ignis bought the act so easily as his advisor gave him a long look.

"What can I say? I'll nap in the car." Noctis shrugged as he pushed himself up to his feet. His tone was enough to dismiss any of Ignis' concerns. Walking to the other side of the Regalia, he slid into his usual seat as Gladio took up the one next to him.

"Shotgun!" Prompto grinned. Nevermind the fact everyone else had already taken seats.

Noct's eyes were already closed even before the engine purred to life. He guessed he'd have maybe twenty minutes at the most to catch some shut eye and rejuvenate his energy.

OOOOOOOO

Perhaps that had been wishful thinking.

Barely moments had passed between him closing his eyes and opening them again as the engine fell silent. Squinting his gaze against the bright sunlight, Noctis wasn't surprised to see that they hadn't travelled too far from Hammerhead at all. Prompto and Gladio were already climbing out of the Regalia, bickering over the curatives bag for the second time that morning.

In the past they'd have left it in the car.

But experience taught them that potions were far better when applied as quickly as possible to wounds. Not five minutes later when someone had managed to run all the way to the car and back.

"Dude.. There's like.. Three of them."

Prompto whined, staring down the 'ferocious' pack of Saberclaw they'd been hunting.

It was true. Only three roamed the plains and had yet to even notice the group.

"Good. This'll be quick then." Noctis murmured as he stepped out of the Regalia and let his gaze adjust to the sunlight once more. Energy crackled along his palm and fingertips as he accessed the Armiger. Ignis' warning tone honestly came a moment too late.

"Noctis-.."

Sword in hand, he drew it backwards before launching it forward towards the nearest Saberclaw. Blue sparks danced along the blade as it flew towards the beast, and Noctis drew on that energy to warp once the weapon was mere inches from the beast's chest. Re-establishing his grasp on the weapon, he brought it crashing down on and felt a swell of pride at the crack of ribs and bones. The Saberclaw buckled underneath him almost immediately. There was no howl of agony, his attack had been too swift and sudden to even warrant a sound.

Dismissing the sword, he caught his Drain Lance in the other hand – borrowed from Ignis, who had only just begun to sprint towards the fray. Thrusting the weapon at an oncoming Saberclaw he felled that one just as quickly as the first.

Turning to face the last one, Noct blinked in surprise as it collapsed under the weight of a greatsword.

"Prince of pain, eh?" Gladio smirked from behind the blade, pulling it free from the Saberclaw's body.

Prompto stood a short distance back, still beside the Regalia as he watched Ignis and Gladio catch up to Noctis. All three Saberclaw had been crushed in a mere moment, and the blonde cheered out as Gladio dismissed the greatsword.

"Woo! Yeah!" Pumping a fist up into the air, he proceeded to hum off the usual victory RPG music. Unfortunately, the action had entirely cost him his concentration on his surroundings.

"PROMPTO!" Gladio's shout broke him free from his little celebration, but a moment too late. It felt like a truck had collided into his back and the blonde was immediately thrown a good few paces forward to the ground. Luckily, he had the sense to roll onto his back just before the culprit pinned him to the dust.

Another Saberclaw?

Just his luck. The beast atop him snapped its jaws towards his face and Prompto immediately kicked back his with his feet – startling the creature long enough for the blonde to summon forth the Quicksilver from the Armiger. Clicking the safety free, he fired off several bullets in panic at the mass of teeth that continued to threaten to tear him apart.

Eventually however, it slumped and Prompto kicked the body aside.

The fizzle of a change in the atmosphere around him was incredibly familiar as Noct warped into existence beside the panicked gunslinger, offering him a hand.

"You alright?" He asked, eyes scanning over Prom for any injuries.

"Er, yeah! Dude, did you see that thing?! Came out of nowhere and everything! Hell, atleast we managed to pack curatives, that could have gone really wrong-…"

Prompto trailed off.

 _Oh no._

A glance to the shoulder bag that had fallen less than a metre away caused his heart to skip a beat.

It was absolutely covered in red, sticky blood. His shots had managed to blow the Saberclaws brains out, sure-.. Out over the bag he'd been carrying.

Ignis and Gladio had finally reached the two by foot and were staring the ruined bag down.

A moment passed before Ignis stepped forward to inspect the damage to the items within – a sigh of relief leaving his lips as he spoke.

"It would appear the curatives are all in one piece. The bag though, that is certainly another story."

"I er-.. Sorry Iggy, didn't really think about the bag, y'know?" Prompto muttered, rubbing a hand sheepishly at his neck.

"Prompto, take off your jacket." Ignis remarked, glancing back.

"I really should have put the bag do-.. Wait, _what?_ " The blonde blinked, staring at Ignis in confusion.

"We're going to have to carry them in something, and considering you're the only one with an easily removable piece of clothing, could we please use your jacket?"

"Uh-.. Sure, I guess?" And with that, he tugged the denim jacket free from his form before handing it over to Ignis. With Gladio's aid, the retainer started to wrap the remaining curatives in the material before passing the newly tied bundle back to Prompto.

"And for Six sake Prompto, please be a little more aware of your surroundings this time." He concluded before getting back into the Regalia. The others soon followed, and Prompto slid into the front seat with his arms wrapped around the jacket.

The ride back to Hammerhead was fairly silent, though more likely due to the oppressing heat of the sun rather than Prompto's earlier blunder. Noctis had dozed off near immediately, and Gladio was flicking absently through the pages of his book. Despite his attempts to change the radio station, Prompto's had was rather swiftly slapped away by an irritated Ignis.

A backpack was going to cost them money.

OOOOOOOOOO

Ignis stepped into the shop at Hammerhead and cast his gaze over the various shelves before making his way up to the counter. The young man stood the other side of the till looked up eagerly at him. It didn't take long to explain their predicament to the staff member, who quickly left to grab two wrapped items from out the back of the shop. Presenting both to the retainer, amusement nearly flickered across his features at the sight of them.

Well, needs must, right?

OOOOOOOOOO

It was nearly as if the day's blunder hadn't happened at all. The trio were back to where they had started, with Prompto and Noctis sat up against the Regalia in the little shade it provided and Gladio stood over them. The only real difference was that the blonde was now cuddling a bundle of curatives in his lap – as apparently putting them in the Regalia wasn't even a wise idea in case someone wandered along and stole them. Who in their right mind would steal curatives, anyway? Was there some kind of drug trend the blonde wasn't aware of?

Pouting his worries away, he blinked in surprise as a bright yellow package was dropped down onto his lap over the bundle. Ignis had stopped just short of him, and was that- was that a smirk on his lips?

"I'm afraid the clerk wasn't expecting such an odd request, but luckily he did have a few backpacks from a previous season."

Prompto just stared down at the pack.

The first obvious thing about it was the colour. Almost as blinding as the sun, it was horrifically bright – almost as bright as the chocobo it represented. Two stitched eyes and a beak stared up at him from the backpack, with little wings on the side to add to the detail. It was a child's bag. A child's bag shaped in the design of a chocobo.

He was fairly sure his face was a picture of confusion right about now.

A hand slapped hard against his back as Noct leaned over to look at the bag.

"Damn Prom, I _really_ feel for you. That bag actually matches your hair-" He started, before a similar bundle was thrown in his face by Ignis. This one was white.

Shaped like a moogle. Complete with dangling pom-pom and wings.

"Don't think you're getting off so easy here either, your Highness. It was your warp that left us rushing after you, and Prompto out in the open. Besides, one bag isn't large enough to carry our supplies so I'm sure you won't mind lending a hand?" Ignis spoke with a straight face.

Noct looked over at Prom – for once lacking in a smart-arse comeback to his advisor.

Prompto looked right back at him, at the same loss for words.

Silently and begrudgingly, the two began to pile the curatives into their respective bags.

Gladio meanwhile couldn't quite wipe the smirk from his lips, trying to hold back a laugh at just how stunned the two looked at their new role. And new attire, apparently.

"Now honestly, don't look so glum. I can assure you we'll find more-.." Ignis paused, avoiding a laugh. "More adequate back-wear at the next outpost we come across."

"Dude, that's like-.. days away!" Prompto whined almost immediately, breaking his previous silence.

"Hey ya'll!" A new voice chimed across the parking lot. If it was even any more possible, the flustered blonde paled considerably with his back to the approaching mechanic. Cindy wasted no time in striding over to where the group were assembled. Unsurprisingly, her gaze fell near immediately on Prompto's new bag.

"Oh my, ain't that cuter than a moogle in a candy store!"

If it was possible to die on the spot, Prompto would have done so right there.

"Ah! It's er-, just, I'm not really- This is-!" He stumbled over his words.

"Looks like the heats broken the kid." Gladio mused, turning his attention back to Cindy. "Cleared out that pack of Saberclaws for you. Shouldn't have a problem there again."

Ignis, Gladio and Cindy fell into a conversation about the surrounding wildlife and past threats as Noctis and Prompto finally finished filling the bags with the curatives. Zipping them up, Prompto stared at what appeared to be a lanyard- no, a lead? Whatever it was, it was attached to the top handle of the bag.

"Duuuude these bags are totally for kids!" Prompto whined for the second time, careful not to let Cindy overhear him.

"I don't know, I think it suits you?" Noct smirked, raising his gaze to the blonde as he pulled his Moogle backpack on.

CLICK.

Noct froze.

And stared.

Stared straight at the camera Prompto had grabbed out from his pocket-.. and had proceeded to snap a photo of him. A photo of the Crown Prince of Lucis.. Wearing a moogle backpack, with the small pom pom dangling over his forehead.

" _Prompto._ " His tone was dangerous.

"Yeah, dude?" Prompto feigned innocence, moving to put the camera away.

"Delete it."

"Aw c'mon, buddy don't be like tha-.." The blonde didn't get a chance to finish his sentence was he was rather abruptly tackled to the ground. Curatives be damned, Noctis was getting his hand on that photograph one way another. Pinning the rather shocked gunslinger to the concrete of the parking lot, he snatched the camera up out of his hands before getting off of him and attempting to make a run for it.

Prompto on the other hand managed to recover in time to see his precious camera snatched from his grasp.

"DUDE!"

Getting to his feet just as fast as Noctis did, he set off in a sprint after his best pal with the pure intention of getting his camera – and that photograph – back. Noctis however wasn't about to let that be a fair chase.

Drawing on the Armiger, he let the energies spark around him.

Retrieving a dagger from subspace, he threw it forward-

Prepared to warp-

And..

CRASH.

Prompto had grabbed the leash dangling from the moogle backpack the moment he'd seen Noctis throw the dagger. Warping was strong, but it wasn't designed to work with two people and thus the pair ended up crashing rather unceremoniously to the ground in a heap instead. The camera was still held outstretched in Noctis' hand as he hit the concrete – groaning from the impact. And even more so as the blonde landed on top of him.

"Prom!"

"Dude! No fair!"

Prompto grabbed the camera from Noct's grasp in the confusion before blinking down at his own shirt. It was soaked.

Infact, both of them were soaked.

Drops of potions, elixirs, and phoenix downs alike spread over the parking lot and drenched the two of them. Noct was led ontop of his bag, which leaked out across the concrete. Prompto's was led a short distance away. The scuffle had left them both covered in the mess of liquids.

"Prompto. Noctis." Ignis' voice pierced through the silence that had overcome the two of them.

Slowly but surely they both turned to look at the retainer.

There were no words to apologise to the look he was giving them right now. The phoenix downs alone had cost thousands of gil.

"Er-.. No hard feelings, right, Iggy?" Prompto choked out.

And with a slow and dramatic motion, Ignis raised a hand to his glasses and repositioned them further up his nose.

Yep, they were screwed.


End file.
